HYDERABAD: Former MLA Eravatri Anil Kumar on Friday filed a petition in the Telangana High Court challenging the legality and validity of Section 90 (1) of the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation Act, 1955, which allows ex-officio members in the civic body’s jurisdiction to participate in the elections to the office of the Mayor and Deputy Mayor.
In his petition, Anil Kumar submitted that there are 150 divisions in the GHMC and 55 ex-officio members (MPs, MLAs and MLCs), who can participate in the Mayoral elections to be held in February. In respect of Parliament, Assembly and local bodies, the representatives (MPs, MLAs and corporators) elected by the people, in turn, pick their leader to be Prime Minister, Chief Minister, Mayor of a corporation and Chairman of a municipality.
But in the GHMC, the MPs, MLAs and MLCs, who fall within the jurisdiction of the civic body, have been included as voters. This defeats the will of the people, he stated. Even nominated MLAs and MLCs can opt for and participate in the Mayoral elections. Importing 55 ex-officio members as voters is an exercise to defeat the will of the people. In fact, it defeats the very objective of people’s representation through the GHMC.
The 55 voters will substantially alter the result of the Mayoral elections. In no other elected bodies such voting is allowed, he noted.Chief Secretary, MAUD Principal Secretary, Secretary to law, Secretary to the TSEC and the GHMC Commissioner have been named as respondents in the case. The matter is likely to come up for hearing next week.